They’re at it again, those crazy Meshchists. I cannot believe it. Why is there all this obsession with Meshchism. What am I talking about? Isn’t it obvious? It was all over the news yesterday and there was a huge photo on the front page of today’s Chicago Tribune. 200 people were injured in a clash between Israeli police and West Bank settlers in the illegal settlement of Amona. What? You say that these aren’t Lubavitchers? Did I say somethong about Lubavitch? I said Meshichsist. That’s right, these people are no better than the Lubavitchers who proclaim their Rebbe is Moshiach. The settlers may not have a redeemer yet but are just as deluded in their Messianist beliefs as Lubavitch is. They believe with complete faith that we are in Aschalta DeGeula. The redemption has already begun for them. In this sense they are even worse than Lubavitch because at least Lubavitch admits that the Geula hasn’t quite begun yet.
From this morning Trib:
Police in riot gear, some of them on horseback, came under a hail of rocks as they drove back crowds gathered around the nine houses and then broke through shutters and windows to remove people inside.
I cannot tell you how much it pains me to see Jew fighting Jew; and Jews hating the government so much. These people are to Religious Zionism as Neturei Karta is to Charedim. They both think the Israeli government is evil and do not recognize its legitimacy.
What happened here is a Chilul HaShem of major proportions. It is one thing to believe in messianist nonsense. It is quite another to take it to the streets. These settlers have “Paskin’d” that any government directive to give up land is to be physically resisted even to the point of harming a fellow Jew who is only trying to do his job. How dare they throw a rock at a police officer? How dare they act like animals in the name of the Torah?! THAT is what makes this event so egregious. All while the world is watching. Had they had a passive resistance, I would have understood. Everyone should have the right to protest laws they feel are unjust. This is what happened in Gaza and the entire event turned into a Kiddush HaShem.
The religiosity of these people is obvious by the way they look and how they speak. They speak in sweeping biblical terms. Most of the women cover every strand of hair not with a Peah Nachris (wig), God forbid, which they Paskin does not satisfy the all prohibitions against uncovered hair ...but in hats and scarves. Their dresses are down to the floor and in general walk the walk and talk the talk. Many of the men there have long beards, huge Kipot, and generally lead lives of complete devotion to God. But the central focus is not Limud HaTorah or Gemilas Chasdim. The central focus is Yishuv Eretz Yisroel which they seem to consider a Yehorg VeAl Yaavor. It is their reason for living. Every ounce of their energy is expended on it. They eat, drink, and breathe it and are blinded by all other considerations. They look at any impediment to retaining and settling all of Eretz Yisroel as something to be fought for violently even if it means harming another Jew. They pay no attention to even the possibility that they might be wrong.
Most of the Charedi rabbinic leadership has condemned such behavior and have forbidden their Bnei Torah to participate in it. Even their own Religious Zionist rabbis have urged restraint and preached against violent resistance. But these people continue making a Chilul HaShem, putting their own lives at risk and those of their families. But they don’t stop there. They have declared a virtual war on the Israeli government.
I have no pity what so ever on these people. They are a group of deluded Jews, led astray be the extremist rhetoric of some Rabbanim so far to the right they make Meir Kahane look like Shimon Peres. If I were the Prime Minister, I would lock every single one of them up and throw away they key.
